Sweet Dreams
by Emma C.C.S
Summary: It begins innocently enough, with the kind of sweet kisses Lily gives him before she goes to sleep. James doesn't realise it means more than that to his little sister. Warnings: Incest.


It begins innocently enough, with the kind of sweet kisses Lily gives him before she goes to sleep. He doesn't realise it means more than that to his little sister.

Lily begins to look out for him too much by the time she is finally a third year and he is a seventh year, with many witches mooning after him. James is not interested in her, after all, and he never notices the wrathful jealousy or the angry possesiveness of Lily.

Albus does, after only watching them for a while (he never gets any time with his siblings when at Hogwarts because he would rather be with his little dark friends, as James calls them). Albus tells James immediately about what he suspects, not wanting his little sister heartbroken; James doesn't know how to react. In Albus' new world, cousins marry cousins and sometimes they even marry siblings to each other: all they can do to preserve the pureness of their blood. James doesn't think like that and for him it's something completely abnormal.

He tells his parents about it in his next letter. Or at least he wishes he had told them, because now he is getting involved in something he doesn't want. Or at least he thinks he doesn't want it.

Because, once again, it begins innocently enough with a serious talk about what is happening and ends up in a series of awkward kisses that James regrets and Lily doesn't. He spends the night thinking how wrong his actions are and in the next days he tries to stop. But Lily has a little something that he doesn't really get, and that makes him interested.

James avoids her with all his might for the rest of the year and spends the holidays in one of the Black's manors in France with Teddy and Victoire. Fortunately, his qualifications and his family's history win him an apprenticeship with one of France's most reknown alchemist. He doesn't need to be close to his sister, and this opportunity gives him the chance to get away from her.

It doesn't help at all, because Albus' letters come in hoards telling him to come back.

_Lily's suffering for your absence_, his letters say and James doesn't know how to react. Little sisters are not supossed to fall in love with their older brothers, and Albus shouldn't be encouraging her for it.

It's all messed up and James wants to tell his parents and ask them what to do, but he's ashamed. Lily isn't the only one who let herself go in the arms of a sibling; he accepted her advances at first, even if now he regrets it.

It's a good thing when he meets Cécilie.

She is everything he likes in a woman, from the wit and intelligence to the black hair and blue eyes that make him fall in love each day until he finally forgets the reason why he is in France.

That is, until it's time to announce his engangement to her. He needs to return to England with his family, and he prepares for it. He hasn't told Cécilie about his history with his sister (Morgana! That sounds so wrong!) and he hopes he never has to.

"You are cruel, James, for bringing her here," are the welcoming words from Albus when they meet after two years.

James begs him not to tell Cécilie, or anyone else, about Lily. A part of him wonders why Lily and Albus seem so insistent on him loving Lily. It's a curious thing he never asked himself before, but now the thoughts are consuming him.

He introduces Cécilie to his parents and is relieved when they are charmed by his fianceé. She seems so taken with Ginny (her love for Quidditch dominating her as she asks question after question) that watching them together makes him and his father smile. James turns around in time to see Lily frowning.

His sister has grown up too much and James wishes he had been there to scare boyfriends away from her and protect her as much as he can. But he wasn't and now they are only strangers who share blood and a somewhat dark past.

"It's a good thing you finally decided to come back, _brother_," she says bitterly, her green eyes staring directly at his face, her rage almost burning him.

"I wanted my family to meet the woman I love," he says, challenging her to say something else.

Lily doesn't.

"Do I need to worry about you, Lily?" he asks, noting how Albus distracts Harry, Ginny and Cécilie. "Do I need to go back to France for another two years?"

Lily watches him for a second before taking a step forward.

"We're siblings, James," she says. "We sould not be far away from each other."

Her words disturb him, somehow, but he nods and returns to Cécilie's side. He kisses her and they continue talking to Harry and Ginny. Albus holds Lily close, as if protecting her. James ignores them as much as he can.

_Isn't everything father's fault, for naming us as he did? _


End file.
